Mass deportations could have effect on food industries

Rep. Tom Tiffany and other congressional leaders must take action now to prevent a potential catastrophe for dairy farmers, meat processors, food service and other agricultural businesses who are reliant on immigrant labor to operate.

When it comes to agribusiness, immigrants quite literally get the job done. According to the trade group National Milk Producers Federation, dairies that employ immigrants are responsible for 79% of the U.S. milk supply while an estimated 50% of all meat-packing jobs are done by foreign-born workers.

This is not a new trend. Immigrant groups have been dominant in manual labor, meat packing and other agribusiness ventures going back throughout the nation’s history for the simple fact that they are willing to do the work for a chance to better themselves and their families.

Campaign rhetoric regarding mass deportations, workplace raids and use of the military to assist in immigration enforcement appears to be on the path to becoming official public policy as president-elect Donald Trump prepares to start his term in January.

While threats of mass deportations may appeal to the party faithful and play well with political focus groups, in the real world, such indiscriminate action would have devastating consequences not only to those in agribusiness, but to the nation’s food security.

A recently released study by UW-Madison researchers, notes that agriculture has an economic impact of $116.3 billion in Wisconsin — 14.3% of the state’s total economic output. The impact is felt even greater in rural portions of the state where agribusiness is the lifeblood of communities.

Beyond an economic impact on agribusiness and farmers, mass deportations of immigrant workers in these industries will have a profound and negative impact on food costs and availability for all consumers. With a scarcity of workers, agribusiness will have to raise wages in order to compete with manufacturing and other jobs for workers — if any are available. These additional costs will be passed along to consumers, hitting American families in the pocket book.

Congressman Tiffany and other national and state leaders must work to ensure stability for American families and businesses and those who simply want to work to provide for their families. The threat of mass deportations and the wholesale disruption it would cause is the stick that must force congress to act on developing a true guest worker program and address immigration issues. There is broad bipartisan support for many of these measures, but solutions were shelved in recent years in favor of having campaign talking points. The campaigns are over, it is time to put aside the bumper-sticker rhetoric and seek serious solutions that address complex issues.

Food security is national security. Disruptions to dairy farming, meat processing and other agribusiness will have a cascading negative impact felt from Main Street to corporate board rooms.

Congressional and state leaders must move quickly to ensure stability for the more than 350,000 Wisconsin residents directly employed in agriculture and related industries and for the millions of others facing food insecurity if these industries grind to a halt.

The Central Wisconsin Publications Editorial Board consists of publisher Kris O’Leary and editor Brian Wilson.